The Fog is Thick

The fog is thick this morning.  Outside our back window the fog hangs over the neighborhood.  You can barely see the trees at the edge.

The drive in this morning to work was not as bad as I'd figured it would be though.  Some coworkers had some slower traffic but for the most part it was smooth sailing.

If this was more consistent, there are quite a few plants that would love this kind of weather.  Mostly vines and such like ivy or cucumber.  Orchids like this kind of high humidity as well since they take moisture out of the air rather than from the ground.

I don't expect these kinds of days to happen too often though.  Sure we're on the lake but this is really the first good fog we've seen.  Sure there's been more dew around us but that's not the same thing.  It is promising for our grass though since a good dew will help keep everything greener.

Do you have a favorite kind of weather?

Summer Rains

The rain  this summer has been keeping our July nice and cool this year. It's still been a little too warm for some of my tomato plants to produce well but they're looking healthy and I have hopes for a nice fall tomato crop.

They say it probably hit 100 degrees for a short bit one day so far but I don't think it quite made it where I was so I'm refusing to count it. The rain and warm weather has gotten my cucumbers to produce really well this year. We've eaten several of them so far and there are still more growing. Likewise the pepper plants are loving the weather. They would grow in hotter weather too but with the rain and nice temperatures there are plenty of peppers for making tasty meals.  For some reason the zucchini isn't doing so well though. They made some fruit and then began to die back. I thought people always talked about the plentiful zucchini but maybe I need to redo the soil. There's always next year.

The potatoes made little bitty potatoes after the tops died back. If there's anything else down there I haven't found it. It's possible that it's really deep though and I want to wait to dig any deeper so as not to disturb any neighboring plants. There are still onions in the ground nearby as well as some herbs.

Garden Harvest

The garden is growing well. Here are a few of the picks from yesterday.  We already ate one of the zucchini and a few of the cherry tomatoes.  The peppers we have planned for a curry although we haven't decided which kind to make yet.  It will almost definitely involve potatoes though since, as far as we can tell, potatoes seem to go well in every curry dish.

 

There are plenty more tomatoes out there as well as some more forming zucchini and peppers. There is also some squash that should be ready soon and hopefully some cucumber.

 

I planted some green onion from seed recently and it's taking off well enough.  It isn't huge but it's already a few inches tall. Quicker than I expected.

 

It's supposed to continue raining for some time this week which hopefully won't interfere too much with the outdoor activities we have planned. The percent isn't too high so maybe it will be mostly morning showers.  We can deal with that.

Bed Preping Time

It's February and the wife has already picked out what she wants to plant for the spring.  First off though we need to prep the beds and get them ready for growing which sounds like a couple weekends of work.

The three beds in the back really need more sun and so I'm planning on finally getting rid of the youngish pecan tree in the back that's monopolizing all of the sun.  That also means summerizing the mirrors so we don't have too much sun bouncing back into the house or garden.  The pecan tree used to shade them so I didn't have to mess with them before.

On the table of things she wants to grow are:
Borage - We grew these years ago and they come up pretty well.
Carrots - Another easy grower. Maybe we'll get normal sized carrots this time.
Leeks - Last time we tried leeks we just planted the bottoms of the ones from the store, didn't do so well.  We'll see if seed leeks are any better.
Onions - I don't know if we're doing starters or seeds but either way should work well.
Celery - Another one we tried to root from the market recently.  It's still green but no roots have formed yet.  We're going to try this one from seed too.
Beet - We've done really well with beets and i don't expect this coming year to be any different.
Cucumber - As long as we keep these watered well all through the summer they'll be fine.

Past that she wants some flowers.  If our lemon grass doesn't make it through the season we're probably getting one of those too.

Citrus Seeds and Others

It's amazing how popular the post on citrus seeds still is after all these years.  It gets several hits a day, probably because there really isn't much out ther on planting trees from seed or what to look for and do with them if you desire to go that route.
I am very happy that my kaffir lime tree, started from seed, is still looking good.  It needs to be repotted which I plan to do around the end of the month or beginning of next month.
Another seed I have recently gotten is from the spqghetti squash we had for dinner last night. Still needs a little processing but they should be good. It's the end of the planting time for squash so I need to step on it.  The cucumbers haven't done so well and unless they pick up I'll probably plant the seeds there.  the canteloupe on the other hand are picking up and have secured their place until winter.

Cucumbers

I found the first cucumber start this morning. The vine isn't very long yet but it's a good sign that I might be getting a few this year.  The neighbor is growing a different kind of cucumber that's more heat tolerant and makes a less flavorful fruit but there are already five off of that plant this season.

My tomato plants have only put forth two tomatoes so far but there's quite a few flowers.  I'm thinking of building up the dirt around the base of the plants some more and see if I can't get even more growing.  If nothing else it will help the plants health.

Gren Mulch to the Rescue

This is not the time of year to be weeding the garden. If there's weeds then you have a great protection from the unbearable heat, might be setting another record this year of most 100 degree or hotter days.
The area I did remove weeds from is looking really bad now whereas the area I left the weeds alone is still looking pretty good. The basil plants and the cucumber plants are what I'm basing this off of. I've lost the basil plant already in the weeded area and the cucumber, although still alive this morning, is fading fast.

Cucumbers and Other Squashes

I still have cucumber plants growing on the vines outside but so far only one cucumber even tried to grow this season. It isn't that difficult to grow them but having them produce takes a little more polinating and less putting it off for the bees, which I haven't seen very many of this year.
The hops on the other hand don't like the heat at all and are shriveling up and resting, I hope, for the summer. We'll see if they return.

Community Garden Update

The planting of the plot out at the community garden didn't go as badly as feared. I went out yesterday just before dark and I could actually see rows of plants. Some of the children must have listened to instructions and put the seeds in the rows I made.
The heirloom squash has also come up and is looking very healthy. At least 4 out of 5 of them did.
Our neighbors of course have much prettier and bigger plants but we'll catch up soon and then no one will be able to tell the difference.
Among the plants I could identify were beans, peas, basil, carrots, cucumber, squash and carrot.

Cucumber - Watermelon - ????

Ok, I have grown cucumber before which is why when what I thought were cucumber seeds came up I assumed they were cucumbers. They had the prickly stems and the leaves looked good enough to be right. The fruit even looked the same when it was really small.

Then there came the shape and texture of the fruit as it got bigger... They were smooth and round and began to show long stripes. A watermelon, right?

Nope... I got up this morning and checked on the progress. I figured with all the rain a watermelon would have gotten to the point I would have to do something about it again. When I looked at it there was a strange grey weaving pattern all around the round fruit. It will soon turn a little orange in the middle and be really sweet, I hope. That is what cantaloupe does after all...

Watermelons???

Ok, I know I've been really happy about my cucumber plants growing and making fruit and all but I have some really bad news. I don't have any cucumbers. Apparently they're watermelons instead. I thought I planted cucumber but due to the lazyness inherent in the way I garden, they either didn't come up and I planted more than one thing or I somehow mistook watermelon seeds for cucumber seeds. They look nothing alike.
I could still be mistaken even since I have never grown watermelon from seed before. They could be some other melon entirely. They are still little green balls after all and who knows what color they may turn.

Rain, rain, rain, rain ...

After watering my gardens twice a day, for I don't know how long now, the rain has finally come to give me a break. All of the plants seem to love it too as they are springing to full attention and plumping as only a rain can make them do.
I can only hope my fig tree is taking in enough to make the second wave of figs ripen and get fat and juicy. So far the figs that are ripening, if you can call it that, are dry and shriveled looking.
The cucumbers were already forming fruit and should keep going well.
Unfortunately my wife can't pick flowers in this weather since it makes picked flowers mold which is not the scent you want in a sachet or bowl of potpourri.
I need to get my citrus plants out while it's raining so they can get used to the outside before too long. The kaffir lime is already sitting out front and has done well and the lemon tree out back has a ton of new branches growing. Still no sign of fruit though. Maybe next year.
There is a decent chance all week for rain. I guess I'll just wait and see what ripens.

It's Alive! (Well, most of it)

Well at least most of it is alive, my gardens that is.
Things that have died:
1. Large Squash plants
2. A few Key Lime Sprouts
3. Sunflowers
4. Purple Cabbage
5. Elephant Ears
6. Lettuce
7. A small portion of the strawberry plants

As far as I can tell everything else is still alive and kicking.
Most of the strawberry plants are doing great as well as a number of runners. I believe cats have damaged and killed the plants that are gone using the box for their own relieving purposes.

The pepper plants in the back are perking up and fruiting. The ginger in the back, not inside, is shooting off more shoots.

The canteloupe in the back near the big crepe myrtle is still spreading out, probably because it was protected from the sun.

The cucumber plant isn't thriving but it is still trying to flower and make fruit.

Those are the highlights. Hopefully the rains will keep everything well watered for a while still. I have been slacking a little too much.

Rolly polly dinner

They have decided to feast themselves on my cucumber. I only had one almost decent sized cucumber and they ate it...
I should have figured on some monster of a bug, or in this case a swarm of monster bugs, to destroy the poor little thing but I just didn't think it would be so soon.

Fortunately there are still several new ones forming and should be able to be harvested in a few weeks. I've never tried pickling to make pickles. I don't even like pickles. Unless you consider bread and butter pickles, "pickles". I don't. They're something much better. The tang just bursts with sweetness and disperses unlike the dill pickle.

I wonder what would happen if someone tried to dill pickle an unripe persimmon?

Thriving Tendrils

The rain has been abundant in the last few days, not a torrent of water or a flood that would just wash away even the dirt above the hard clay that is so common if not maddeningly pervasive in this area.
This is why my plants have been spared the torture of my poor watering habits recently. I haven't had much time for watering, weeding, planting, or harvesting. My plants seem to have understood the last one and seem to have decided to help out in that area by producing almost nothing to be harvested.
The rain has brought about a spurt of growth among the vines in the yard, most noticeably with the squash and cucumbers. These are the same cucumbers that were given to me by one our friends along with some basil that was left on the front porch for some weeks. Now it sits up by the corner of the house on the garage side with many other potted plants to be moved to a sunnier place as soon as there is a sunnier place to move them to. I doubt this will ever happen since it is the sunniest place in the yard unless a tree gets hit by lightning or a car and falls over.
Speaking of the sunniest place in the yard, I hope to move the citrus around again to a sunnier place than they are currently at which gets between eight and ten minutes of sun a day (the potting area).

Cucumber Plant

The cucumber is on the side of the house on the corner and is growing well.

Cucumber plants

One of our friends gave us a cucumber plant already potted and starting to produce flowers.
That was a few days ago and I still haven't gotten around to moving it to a good location to produce well. I'm thinking of putting it by the sunflowers and bean plant, possibly giving it a structure to climb as well. That would have to do since the melon/squash plant is getting way too big for what I had in mind. I only hope that I get some decent cucumbers off of it.

Pictures soon to come. I also need to put up some pics of the other plants that have already borne fruit.